Go Beyond: Discover the Community and Opportunity of AICPA’s Young CPA Network

You made it. You’ve been through school, you’ve got a pretty good job, you’ve established a foothold in your career.

But, this is no time to get complacent. While one phase of your life may be drawing to a close, an exciting new chapter awaits — one that offers amazing opportunities to go beyond what you’ve already accomplished. It also gives you the chance to push yourself — and your career — beyond what you may have thought possible.

Sound interesting? Well, if you’re ready to set and achieve ambitious goals, the AICPA’s Young CPA Network is here for you every step of the way.

A Community Beyond the Ordinary.

The Young CPA Network is a unique community that offers CPAs like you a dynamic home base (online and off), a vast resource for answers and advice and somewhere to unleash your ideas and energy.

It’s the place to turn when it’s time to step up in your professional life — and keep control of your personal life. It’s a vibrant, active group of people like you who are advancing their careers, charting their own paths and looking to make the most of their skills.

With our help, it’s easy for you to find someone who’s dealing with the same issues you are — and even better — someone who’s been there before and is able to show you the ropes. Whether you’re looking for an answer, a way to plug in or a way to give back, look to the Network.

What Kind of Resources Are We Talking About?

Here’s what you can find on the Young CPA website.

Career Tips
Need guidance or advice? Check out these tips in a series of short-and-sweet articles. For instance, whether you effortlessly work a room or need a jump-start to say “hello,” we can all get better at networking. The examples in this article can teach you a thing or two.

Custom-Designed Education and Training Take advantage of a wealth of great AICPA events, web seminarsand conferences, including the annual E.D.G.E. conference that brings together young CPAs from around the country. These benefits can give you a unique perspective on topics and strategies that apply to your everyday work life and help boost your long-term career. Don’t worry if you’re already too busy to take time off for a conference, or can’t cover all the travel expenses. In addition to the web seminars, there are tons of CPE Self-Study courses, articles and online publications you can immerse yourself in.

Leadership AcademyEverything the network offers is important, of course, but the headline program is the annual Leadership Academy. Now in its fourth year, it’s specifically designed to encourage young CPAs to take active roles with the AICPA, state CPA society, and in their local communities. Are you a leader?

Up-To-The Minute Reading MaterialStay on top of the latest topics and happenings in the CPA world with The Edge, a monthly e-Newsletter just for young CPAs. It features stories on career management, work/life integration, leadership and (everyone’s favorite) an ongoing series of stories about Quirky Accounting Engagements. Soon, you’ll also find a series of blog posts on the Network Community site written by young CPAs, discussing issues that matter most to you and your peers.

Social MediaWhat’s even more up-to-the-minute than a blog post? Everything that’s happening on LinkedIn, Facebook and our Twitter feed. Don’t miss a thing.

Resource PagesHave a pressing query that just can’t wait? Visit the Young CPA Resources’ pagesright this minute to get your questions answered and find all kinds of great advice.

Professional DevelopmentGoing from a cube to the C-suite? Tips on learning to navigate a career change to a supervisory or managerial role, or examining alternative career opportunities are right at your fingertips. Suffering from Sunday night blues? We can help you reinvigorate your on-the-job satisfaction — we’re here as an ally on your road to success.

VolunteeringNot involved enough yet? Volunteering is a great way to make yourself heard and take an active role in shaping the future of the Young CPA program. You can get started by checking out the list of opportunities on the website.

NetworkingThe common thread that runs through everything the Young CPA Network does is the chance to meet and interact with other young CPAs. Sure, networking is built into conferences and it’s a natural outgrowth of volunteering. But we prefer to think of it as something that encompasses the entire community, allowing members to build strong personal and professional ties — helping themselves, helping each other and helping our CPA-dom as a whole.

Begin your beyond.

There you have it. Really, it’s all there ready to go, just waiting for you to pick up the ball and run with it. So go ahead, make the Young CPA Network your springboard for success. From here, the opportunities are endless.

We love to hear from AICPA members with suggestions, comments or ideas. Forward them to YoungCPANetwork@aicpa.org, where the Young Member Initiatives staff, led by Donna Salter and assisted by Joshua Brubaker, can provide you with the help you need to take you beyond.